AION: The Tower of Eternity is still under development by NCsoft, and any information related to the game is subject to change with the release of more information.

Aion: The Tower of Eternity is a fantasy MMORPG, chronicling an epic conflict between the Elyos, the Asmodians and a server-controlled NPC faction, the warlike Balaur. If you're having any trouble understanding anything in this article or any other, you may find your answer in the Common Terms

Contents 1 Basic Storyline 2 Key Features 2.1 Interactive gameplay systems 2.2 PvPvE (Player vs Player vs Environment) 2.3 Free flying and flying combat 2.4 Beautiful and detailed graphics 2.5 For Casual and Hardcore Players 3 System Requirements 3.1 Minimum for Closed Beta 3.2 Recommended for Closed Beta 4 Customization 5 Updates and Expansions 5.1 Updates 5.2 Expansions 6 Factions 6.1 Elyos 6.2 Asmodians 6.3 Balaur 7 World Area and Zones 7.1 World Shape 7.2 Zones

Basic Storyline

In Aion: The Tower of Eternity, players must choose a side between two warring factions: the Elyos or the Asmodians. Once their world was whole; a perfect union joined at the center by The Tower of Eternity. When a great catastrophe shattered The Tower of Eternity, it split the world into two halves - and awoke the Balaur, a warring race exiled within the extra-dimensional Abyss. The Balaur now seek revenge on both of these new worlds, sparking an epic conflict. The part you play, the side you choose and the decisions you make will help determine the ultimate fate of Aion.

Key Features

Interactive gameplay systems

The actions of each faction on each individual server will eventually trigger consequences, which will then change each server's live environment. No two servers should ever be the same.

PvPvE (Player vs Player vs Environment)

Aion: The Tower of Eternity features an evolving conflict system, which manages the complex relationships and alliances between realms, races and guilds. The system also controls a third NPC faction, the Balaur, who may act as the enemy - or the ally - of players.

Free flying and flying combat

Take to the skies and soar over the landscape, with wings that allow your character to access remote areas, travel to different parts of the world - and to engage enemies in aerial combat!

Beautiful and detailed graphics

Created using a modified version of the Crytek engine (the CryENGINE, as used in FarCry), Aion: The Tower of Eternity is the most graphically beautiful MMORPG yet released. Astounding levels of detail on characters and in environments immerse you in the world of Aion.

For Casual and Hardcore Players

The Developers have created a very balanced system that allows casual players to be able to get to the same level as hardcore players at their own pace. No longer are the best armors held only for the Hardcore and PvP players.

Quests are also tailored for Casual players, each quest being shorter then most quests from other games, or if there is a need for a large, long quest, it is broken into parts and each will be a seperate quest that leads up to the same resolution.

Hardcore players will rejoice in knowing that while the armors are able to reached by crafting and other 'casual' methods, Heading into the Abyss zone and participating it the events it has to offer will grant much more Experience, as well as quicker access to the end-game armors and uber-items.

System Requirements

Minimum for Closed Beta

• CPU: Pentium 4 2.8GHz or AMD Athlon 2800
• RAM:512MB
• VGA:GeForce 5700 or Radeon 9600, DirectX 9c or higher
• Hard Drive: 20GB available space
• Windows XP or Vista

Recommended for Closed Beta

• CPU: Pentium 4 3.0GHz or AMD Athlon 64 3000
• RAM:1GB
• VGA:GeForce 6600 or Radeon x1550, DirectX 9c or higher
• Hard Drive: 20GB available space
• Windows XP or Vista

Customization

User interface customizations, or an 'Open Source' UI, is still under consideration. The problem is that it could open up opportunities for hackers and malicious tools (exploitation).

Updates and Expansions

Updates

No official information has been released as to the frequency of patch and update releases and the extent of these updates.

Expansions

There will be big, regular expansions once or twice a year. How they are to be distributed depends on the area.

Factions

There are currently 3 Factions announced; the Elyos, the Asmodians, and the Balaur.

Elyos

Sometimes referred to as the 'Good' side or 'Angelic', they are the faction that lives on the bottom half of the world. It receives more sunlight than the world of the Asmodians, and the people and scenery show it. Boasting tanned people, bright and colorful areas, it is lively and a sort of utopia of sorts. The characters are more human looking than their Asmodian counterparts.

Asmodians

Commonly referred to as the 'Evil' side or the 'Demons', they are the faction that lives on the top half of the world. It receives substantially less sunlight than the world of the Elyos, and the people and scenery show it. Boasting pale-skinned people, dark and deep-colored areas, it is a somber area with little light. The characters are more beast/animal looking than their Elyos counterparts, sporting clawed feet armor and hair sprouting from the body armor.

Balaur

The Balaur are a draconic race, and are Non Playable. They mostly inhabit the Abyss zones (it is unknown as of yet if they will be reachable in normal play zones) and control the castles there. They are AI controlled by the server, and will crash Castle Sieges happily. Their actions are not to be deciphered. One time they may help the Elyos defend a castle, the next, they might attack the Elyos as they retreat, and another time they may go after both factions.

The race is implemented to not only add balance but also add a air of doubt to the battlefield when they approach a RvR fight, since it is never a sure thing if they will help or hinder your faction.

World Area and Zones

The world of Aion is known as Atreia. Its a brand new type of area, where the world is shaped like a sphere, and the inhabitants live on the inside of that partially hollowed out sphere.

World Shape

The world of Aion resembles a globe, divided horizontally into two halves. The lower half is the world of the Elyos, the upper half is the world of the Asmodians. So basically the world-map of Aion is not on a horizontal plane, like a traditional fantasy world; instead it's vertical. With this in mind, some parts of both worlds can only be accessed from the air - such as floating castles, and islands in the sky. Because of this, all of the player characters can gain wings.

The area lying in between the two halves of Atreia is referred to as the Abyss. The Elyos's half is named Elysea while the Asmodians' half is named Asmodae.

Zones

The world is zoned and there are several transportation methods available including walking, flight, and teleportation. The loading speed between zones is still in tuning but even at this point it is very short.